Polymorph
The polymorphed creature acquires the physical and natural abilities of the creature it has been polymorphed into while retaining its own mind. Physical abilities include natural size and Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores. Natural abilities include armor, attack routines (claw, claw, and bite; swoop and rake; and constriction; but not petrification, breath weapons, energy drain, energy effects, etc.), and similar gross physical qualities (presence or absence of wings, number of extremities, etc.). Natural abilities also include mundane movement capabilities, such as walking, swimming, and flight with wings, but not magical flight and other magical forms of travel, such as blink, dimension door, phase door, plane shift, teleport, and teleport without error. Extremely high speeds for certain creatures are the result of magical ability, so they are not granted by this spell. Other non-magical abilities (such as an owl’s low-light vision) are considered natural abilities and are retained.
Any part of the body or piece of equipment that is separated from the whole reverts to its original form. The creature’s new scores and faculties are average ones for the race or species into which it has been transformed. The character cannot, for example, turn someone into a mighty weightlifter to give the subject great Strength. The subject retains its Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores, level and class, hit points (despite any change in its Constitution score), alignment, base attack bonus, and base saves. (New Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores may affect final attack and save bonuses.) The subject retains its own type (for example, "humanoid"), extraordinary abilities, spells, and spell-like abilities, but not it's supernatural abilities. The subject can cast spells for which it has components. It needs a humanlike voice for verbal components and humanlike hands for somatic components. The subject does not gain the spell-like abilities of its new form. The subject does not gain the supernatural abilities (such as breath weapons and gaze attacks) or the extraordinary abilities of the new creature. The new form can be disorienting. Any time the polymorphed creature is in stressful or demanding situations (such as combat), the creature must succeed at a Will save (DC 19) or suffer a –2 penalty on all attack rolls, saves, skill checks, and ability checks until the situation passes.
When the polymorph occurs, the creature’s equipment, if any, transforms to match the new form. If the new form is a creature who does not use equipment (aberration, animal, beast, magical beast, construct, dragon, elemental, ooze, some outsiders, plant, some undead creatures, some shapechangers, or vermin), the equipment melds into the new form and becomes nonfunctional. Material components and focuses melded in this way cannot be used to cast spells. If the new form uses equipment (fey, giant, humanoid, some outsiders, many shapechangers, many undead creatures), the subject’s equipment changes to match the new form and retains its properties.
The caster can freely designate the new form’s minor physical qualities (such as hair color, hair texture, and skin color) within the normal ranges for a creature of that type. The new form’s significant physical qualities (such as height, weight, and gender) are also under the character's control but must fall within the norms for the new form’s species. The subject can be changed into a member of its own species or even into itself. (If changed into itself, it does not suffer the above-mentioned penalties from the disorientation of a new form.)
The subject is effectively disguised as an average member of the new form’s race. If the character uses this spell to create a disguise, the character gets a +10 bonus on the character's Disguise check.
Incorporeal or gaseous forms cannot be assumed, and incorporeal or gaseous creatures are immune to being polymorphed. A natural shapeshifter (a lycanthrope, doppelganger, experienced druid, etc.) can take its natural form as a standard action.
Effect
Expending 15 mana points allows you to polymorph yourself. The new form can range in size from Diminutive to one size larger than the subject’s normal form. The character can change form as often as desired for the duration of the spell simply by willing it so. Each change is a full round action. The character regains hit points as if having rested for a day only from the initial transformation, however. If slain, the polymorphed creature reverts to its original form, though it remains dead.
Expending 30 mana points allows you to polymorph one other creature in your range. Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./rank), Target: One creature, Duration: Permanent, Saving Throw: Fortitude negates, Spell Resistance: Yes. Polymorph other changes the subject into another form of creature. The new form can range in size from Diminutive to one size larger than the subject’s normal form. Upon changing, the subject regains lost hit points as if having rested for a day (though this healing does not restore temporary ability damage and provide other benefits of resting for a day; and changing back does not heal the creature further). If slain, the polymorphed creature reverts to its original form, though it remains dead.
Creatures who are polymorphed for a long time (years and years) grow accustomed to their new form and can overcome some of these drawbacks (DM’s discretion).
Expending 46 mana points allows you to polymorph one object or creature into another. Components: V, S, M/DF, Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels), Target: One creature or object, Duration: See text, Saving Throw: Will negates (object) (see text), Spell Resistance: Yes (object). The duration of the spell depends on how radical a change is made from the original state to its enchanted state. The DM determines the duration by using the following guidelines:
| Change Subject Is: | Increase to Duration Factor* |
|---|---|
| Same kingdom (animal, vegetable, mineral) | +5 |
| Same class (mammals, fungi, metals, etc.) | +2 |
| Same size | +2 |
| Related (twig is to tree, wolf fur is to wolf, etc.) | +2 |
| Same or lower Intelligence | +2 |
| Duration Factor | Example | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Pebble to human | 20 Minutes |
| 2 | Marionette to human | 1 Hour |
| 4 | Human to marionette | 3 Hour |
| 5 | Lizard to manticore | 12 Hours |
| 6 | Sheep to wool coat | 2 Days |
| 7 | Shrew to manticore | 1 Week |
| 9+ | Manticore to shrew | Permanent |
Unlike the 30 mp version, the 46 mp version does grant the creature the Intelligence score of its new form. If the original form didn’t have a Wisdom or Charisma score, it gains those scores of the new form.
As with other polymorph spells, damage sustained in the new form can result in the injury or death of the polymorphed creature. In general, damage occurs when the new form is changed through physical force, although the DM will have to adjudicate many of these situations.
Also note that a polymorph effect often detracts from an item’s or creature’s powers but does not add new powers except perhaps movement capabilities not present in the old form. A non-magical object cannot be made magical by this spell. A magic item or weapon or other object can be polymorphed into another type of magic object, but it never gains abilities superior to those of the original object.
This spell cannot create material of great intrinsic value, such as copper, silver, gems, silk, gold, and platinum.
This spell can also be used to duplicate the effects of polymorph other, flesh to stone, stone to flesh, transmute mud to rock, transmute water to dust, or transmute rock to mud.
Expending 55 mana points as the 30 mp version, except this spell enables the character to assume the form of any single creature of less than deity status (including unique dragon types, or the like) or any single object. The assumed form can be no smaller than a flea and no larger than 200 feet in its largest dimension. Unlike polymorph other, this spell allows incorporeal forms to be assumed.
The character's new form works like a polymorph other form. The character still does not gain the supernatural or spell-like abilities of the character's new form, though the character does gain its extraordinary abilities while keeping the character's own. The character also gains the type of the new form (for example, "dragon" or "magical beast") in place of the character's own. The new form does not disorient the character. Parts of the character's body or pieces of equipment that are separated from the character do not revert to their original forms. Thus, a new form’s poison bite is effective.
The character can become just about anything the character is familiar with. The character can change form once each round as a free action. The change takes place either immediately before the character's regular action or immediately after it, but not during the action.
If the character uses this spell to create a disguise, the character gets +10 on the character's Disguise check.
Focus: Worth at least 1,500 gp.
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